Lisa Darsonval wears a lock and holds a key at the Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club in Carpinteria, where during the Lock And Key Singles Party on Sunday, men will break the ice by using keys to open locks worn or held by the women.
Santa Barbara News: Open Your Heart, Local Matchmaker to Host Lock and Key Singles Party
PDF File, by Dave Mason
Guys, it may never be this easy to unlock your true love’s heart.
Men will hold the keys — literally — at an upcoming event where the women will wear locks around their necks. It’s all part of the third Lock and Key Singles Party noon to 3 pm Sunday at the Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club, 3300 Via Real, Carpinteria. The fee, $22 in advance and $32 at the door, includes a drink, appetizer, valet parking and viewing of that day’s two polo matches.
The goal is to find a match that fits.
Lisa Darsonval, owner of Santa Barbara Matchmaking, the business co-hosting this party with Lock and Key Events, said she would tell men attending the event: Ï did all the work for you and got all the women. You just have to show up!” The dating coach laughed.
Even if the men and women don’t immediately see fireworks, at least they’ll get a chance to win more than $2,000 worth of prizes. Every time a man opens a lock, both the man and woman turn in the key and lock for tickets for drawings for restaurant certificates, services at salons, a massage, jewelry, books, tarot readings and more. The man and woman then get a new key and lock and can meet other people.
The man or woman who turns in the most keys or locks wins the Locksmith Award and free admission to two future Lock and Key Singles parties.
The first parties were attended by 30 people in October at EOS Lounge on Anacapa Street and 60 people in February at Kalyra By the Sea winery on State Street. Ms. Darsonval expects 120 people at Sunday’s party. Typically people in their 30s to 50s attend the event but adults of all ages are welcome. Ms. Darsonval manages registrations on the lockandkeyevents.com website so that it’s an even split of women and men. If too many women register, she closes that part of the website until the men catch up.
The nice thing is there’s no fear of rejection, Ms. Darsonval said. “Nobody says, ‘No, you can’t try to unlock my lock!’ It just doesn’t happen. Everybody is there for the same reason (to meet people and win prizes).” … “Everybody loves the event,” she added, referring to notes she has read on her company’s Facebook page. She said the men typically need more encouragement to go to the parties than the women, but both genders are glad they’re there.